


Big Stick Diplomacy

by windscryer



Series: Maja's Platonic VLD Week 2017 [7]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Female Pidge | Katie Holt, Gen, Pidge | Katie Holt is Savage, Platonic Relationships, Platonic VLD Week, Protective!Pidge | Katie Holt, Red Lion & Pidge agree that Keith needs to be protected, Team as Family, messing with Pidge's stuff is a bad idea, non-fuzzy galra keith, that includes her family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-12
Updated: 2017-03-12
Packaged: 2018-10-02 23:45:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10230728
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/windscryer/pseuds/windscryer
Summary: Keith is bad at diplomacy, but he is trying. Pidge... not so much.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This is my suuuuuuper late final entry for the Platonic VLD Week on tumblr. The prompts were AU/free.
> 
> As always, Lucy is the one who not only gave me the INCREDIBLE idea, but also flailed over it in approval.

“I am not disagreeing that allying with the Paladins of Voltron would be a great boon to any resistance efforts, but can we truly trust them when they have a _Galra_ in their midst? In Voltron itself even?”

Keith’s fingers tightened around his glass and he lowered his gaze to the floor. He pressed his lips flat on the sigh that wanted to escape.

He should have stayed in the Castle.

Hunk would have been much better here. He'd probably be sharing recipes with people and making them laugh with Lance. And Keith would have been much happier guarding the castle.

It's not like he would have missed it completely with the little cameras Pidge and Hunk had rigged into the fancy dress uniforms Coran had helped them make with the castle's fabrication units. Even now, Keith could hear Hunk in his ear talking to Lance, with occasional breaks to keep Shiro updated on the name of yet another alien dignitary.

Keith glanced over to where Shiro was standing next to Allura. He could admit to more than a little envy right now because you wouldn't know Shiro was completely out of his element unless, like Keith, you knew him well.

Lance, of course, was holding court surrounded by a small crowd, gesturing as he told some story— Oh the one where he and Blue did the barrel roll through the canyon right as it collapsed. Yeah, that was probably a really good story to tell. His listeners seemed to agree, oohing and aahing. Or whatever their equivalent was.

Keith wasn't good at telling stories though. Not in ways that people found interesting.

Which is why he was here, on the edge of the room, holding a glass of… something… and trying to just not cause trouble.

Except, apparently all he needed to do was be here and be himself to do that.

Where was Pidge? She wouldn't mind him lurking behind her and she could tell interesting stories too. It would at least be a less boring way to pass the time.

He spotted a green dress across the room that might be her and pushed off the wall.

Weaving his way through the crowd, being careful not to bump into anyone or accidentally pour his drink all over them, he eventually reached the pillar near where he'd spotted her and paused to reorient himself.

"No, I cannot support it," a high-pitched voice said from somewhere on the other side of the plant he was possibly using for cover. "It is unconscionable to have one of the very _silvets_ that have enslaved us all for far too long holding a place of honor and trust like that."

Keith didn't outwardly cringe, but he did lose track of his search for Pidge. Apparently everyone here had a problem with him, but being _diplomatic_ meant they couldn’t say it to his face. He much preferred combat because it was direct and you settled it and it was done.

"But is he? I heard he was from some planet outside the Empire's reach. A half-breed, and obviously not born of stock loyal to Zarkon, if they ran so far away."

"Half is still too much," the first speaker said. "And how do we know that this wasn't a deliberate plan? Why else would he be from the very planet one of the Lions was hidden on?"

Keith grimaced and then closed his eyes, breathing slowly in and out through his nose. "Patience yields focus," he muttered.

What he was supposed to be focusing on he didn't know, but maybe he could flip that around and get focus to yield some patience instead. He snorted. Wouldn't that be a nice change?

“Keith?” Hunk asked. “Everything okay?”

Keith repressed the sigh, but couldn’t completely hide it from his voice. “Everything’s fine, Hunk.”

“I can send someone—”

“No,” Keith said. “It’s fine. I’m fine.” They were all having fun—or doing important things. No reason to spoil the evening for anyone else.

“Okay,” Hunk said. “If you’re sure.” He didn’t sound sure though. “If that changes, just let me know, okay?”

“Yeah, sure. Of course.”

Opening his eyes, he came to a decision. He needed air. He— Just a short break. Obviously no one would miss him. If anything, he might improve the party with his absence.

He stepped out of the shadow of the plant intent on making it to the open door leading to a garden area. Unfortunately, he was a little _too_ intent on his goal because he walked right into someone and knocked them into their companion. His glass and their glass were both upended spilling the local fancy alcohol and whatever Keith had been drinking down his front and all over the alien he'd run into.

 _Shit_.

"I am so sorry," he said, then turned to look around for one of the waitstaff who might have a towel or something. "Uhhhh... Let me—"

"I don't need your help," the alien hissed, yanking their arm away from his outstretched hand. They made a really flutey, elegant sort of sound, but Keith was betting it wasn't a compliment.

Looking him up and down with an expression that looked like disdain even on pale blue, rubbery, weirdly indistinct features, they added, "If you truly want to help, _Galra_ , you can surrender your position and let someone who deserves it pilot the Red Lion. Run back to your mighty Emperor and tell him that his reign will soon end." They made another sound that probably wasn't any more polite and then hocked a gob of slime up and spat it at Keith's chest.

He flinched, but didn't move otherwise, too shocked by the whole thing.

Everyone close enough to hear what was going on was staring and murmuring among themselves. Some appeared horrified, some were blank-faced, and some looked like they very much agreed with the sentiments. There were a few sympathetic or embarrassed faces, but no one spoke up on his behalf.

Of course, he couldn't blame them, but fury still burned hot in his veins. Zarkon wasn't _his_ emperor. He wasn't a Galra spy or whatever they thought. He hadn't even known who they were before coming into space and he definitely hadn't known he was part Galra until just a few months ago.

But even if he was, didn't the fact that he was trying to help mean anything?

Vaguely he could hear Hunk in his ear, alternating between telling Keith to stay calm and telling everyone else what was going on and asking for someone to come help.

A flash of movement in the distance caught Keith's eye and he looked up to see Shiro peeling off from Allura's side and stepping into a corner.

He turned and found Keith, holding his gaze as he said in that damnable steady voice of his, "Breathe with me, Keith." He took an exaggerated breath and Keith didn't even have to think about it, his lungs inflated and deflated in time. "Good. That's it. Keep breathing. Patience yields focus. They don't know anything about you. Red chose you. She still chooses you. She knows who you are and she doesn't care and neither do we. You don't have to prove anything to them."

He wanted to retort that he did though. The whole point of this entire thing was to try and make friends with people so they could form a real alliance among different worlds and systems and start fighting back in an organized way instead of just the random guerrilla strikes that they, as Voltron, were capable of.

But he didn't want to look crazy by talking to himself, and anyway his side of the conversation probably wouldn't help matters.

"He can't even deny it," someone else said, and Keith turned to see a tall alien with thick orange fur and four legs, the upper two arms crossed over their chest. They were glaring at him through narrowed green eyes and he remembered Allura reminding them to be careful about attributing human and Altean expressions to some of the more unique species they would see tonight.

Except his gut told him that he wasn't wrong about how he was reading this. This person really looked like they would very happily bite his head off. Possibly literally.

Someone else made a sound like a snort but more airy. "He's not a very good spy, is he?"

"A single challenge and he reveals himself for what he really is," someone else agreed.

The room felt like it was shrinking and Keith didn't know what to do. He knew what he _wanted_ to do, but he couldn't— Shiro and Allura and everyone was counting on him not screwing this up. His hands flexed at his sides until one of the aliens whispered to a companion and they both backed up. After that more did the same, the circle around him expanding.

The alien he'd run into that started all of this held their ground, and he wondered if they were trying to provoke him to prove a point.

He grit his teeth and clenched his fists tight. He wouldn't give them the satisfaction.

Shiro cursed under his breath and then said, "Walk away, Keith. Turn around and just walk away. Lance is at your seven o'clock. He'll get you out of the room and I'll meet you outside."

When he didn't move, Shiro repeated, " _Keith."_

He sucked in a deep breath and then let it out. Whatever. He was done with this whole thing anyway. Maybe he could call Red and go back to the Castle.

_Keith? Danger? I will come._

He smirked at the nudge in his mind. Yeah, that was a good plan.

"Uhhhhh, guys?" Hunk said. "I— Ohhhh, that's not good."

Shiro was demanding to know what was happening, giving up on hanging back and pushing his way through the crowd. "Keith! Go! Now!"

"Red's leaving. Guys, Red is leaving— How is she going to get out of the hangar?" he asked, but he didn't sound like he doubted she would find a way, more like he was just curious.

"Paladin of Voltron coming through! Out of my way. _Move!"_

Two aliens on his left jumped apart and Pidge came storming through. She was taller than normal since Allura and Coran had found her a pattern for heels to match her gown, but still well shorter than most of the people present. It didn't seem to make a difference now, though, as she strode into the space between Keith and his aggressor, using the sheer force of her presence to force them to step back.

The surprise on the alien's face was pretty sweet, especially when it shifted into confusion as Pidge just stared them down for a solid thirty seconds.

Finally they grew annoyed and the alien opened their mouth to speak, but Pidge beat them to the punch.

"Nuh uh. Nope. You don't get to speak. My turn now. I don't know who you are or what planet you're from, and, honestly, I don't care. You are what we call on my planet a bitch."

Keith only stared at the back of Pidge's head, but he heard more than one surprised noise over the comms. Lance sounded like he might be choking on laughter. Allura just sighed softly.

Pidge wasn't done though. "You don't like Allura's hair and you think Shiro is too tall and that Lance talks too much and I’m pretty sure you think Coran’s an idiot which couldn’t be more wrong. But it's not just us you have a problem with, is it?" she asked as Keith listened to Lance respond with indignation and Coran make a sound of discontent. Keith glanced at Shiro and saw his eyes had narrowed.

"I heard you say the Volannans smell like irkit droppings."

A few of the onlookers gasped and murmurs spread out in a wave. "I don't know what that is,” Pidge continued, “but being compared to excrement isn't generally a compliment. And what about the ambassador from Serlaenquin? What did you call him?"

She tapped her chin and thoughtfully regarded the ceiling. "Oh, yes, 'a parasite-ridden gillup'." She turned to one of the closer people on her right and said, "I'm not from around here, obviously. What's a gillup?"

The look on the alien's face—not to mention the reaction of others nearby confirmed it was not a thing you wanted to be compared to either.

“Yeah that’s what I figured.”

Pidge lifted one of her hands and counted off on her fingers, "You've insulted the food, complained about the drinks, treated the waitstaff like shit, and if you've said anything at all positive about anyone here, I will eat a steaming pile of irkit droppings."

A few noises of disgust and shock—and one or two possible laughs—rippled through the onlookers.

Pidge crossed her arms over her chest. "Keith is part Galra, yes. But he's 100% loyal, 100% trustworthy, _1000%_ more qualified, and he was chosen by the Red Lion—the most picky of all the Lions, FYI, so if that's not a ringing endorsement I don't know what is."

She looked the alien up and down. "And he's prettier than you."

The alien—and many of the bystanders—gaped at Pidge.

Who ignored it in favor of turning and hooking her arm in Keith’s. She pulled him around and dragged him away and toward Lance—who was staring in shock, though it morphed into a grin by the time they reached him.

Lance’s gathering scattered, not unlike fish swimming away from a seal, though a surprising number of them stayed close enough to eavesdrop.

"Don't touch me," Pidge said, when Lance looked like he was going to throw an arm around her shoulders. He pulled back the limb and his smile dimmed.

"Hey, are you okay?" he asked.

Pidge didn't speak for a few moments—long enough for Shiro to catch up to them and for Hunk to report that Red was scratching at the door and, should he let her out or…? Because she was definitely going to do some serious damage if she continued.

 _I'm okay_ , Keith told her. The fact that she was willing to come no matter the cost meant more to him than he could say, but she could hopefully feel it. _You don't have to come. I'm fine._

He got a very strong sense of doubt, but he just breathed in deeply and closed his eyes, reinforcing the feeling that he would be fine, there was no danger, he didn't need to be rescued.

She was put out, but he could also feel her acceptance. He was pretty sure she wouldn’t be truly satisfied until he was back in the Castle and paid her a visit in person so she could see he was okay, but she was willing to wait. For now.

"Oh, hey, she calmed down," Hunk said. "Sort of. She's not trying to claw her way out anymore so, that's good."

"Pidge?" Lance said again.

Keith opened his eyes to see Pidge still glaring across the room, arms crossed over her chest.

She inhaled through her nose, then blew the breath back out shortly. "No. I'm not okay. Where does that bitch get off saying Keith should give up Red to someone else? Like who? Her?" She snorted. “Yeah fucking right.”

"There are some concerns," one of the braver aliens nearby said, "that having all the Paladins from one planet is not… very balanced." Pidge turned her stubborn glare on the new guy. He looked a little taken aback at the ferocity of her gaze, but continued. "Even the previous Paladins came from different worlds. Is it truly an alliance if everyone is not represented? We are not interested in trading one Emperor Zarkon for another."

"Okay, first of all," Pidge retorted, taking a step forward. Lance reached out to keep her from actually launching herself at the guy, but when she shrugged him off and snarled at him, he put his hands up in surrender.

"The last group of Paladins might not be the best argument here because _Zarkon_ was one of those Paladins. Obviously the diversity of the team didn’t make a lick of difference. But maybe that would be a good point about representation anyway except _we_ didn't pick ourselves. The Lions choose their Paladins. There was, no doubt, an element of not having a large pool of candidates to choose from, but they didn't have to choose anyone if they didn't like us. And even if they had chosen temporarily for the purposes of escaping or returning to the Castleship, they've all had options since then."

She waved her hands to indicate the room around them. "Nothing at all is stopping Red from coming right here right now and picking a new Paladin." She snorted. "Though it would be really funny to watch someone try to force the issue anyway."

She covered her face with her hand as she laughed harder. "Oh my god, I almost want to suggest it."

Peeking through her fingers, she smirked at Keith. "What do you say? Call her down and ask her if she wants a new pilot?" Her eyes lit up and she bounced in place, hands dropping to her sides.

"Oh my god, tell her to take that bitch on a flight! I bet she pukes before the first barrel roll is even over," she said, cackling with a fiendish glee.

"No one is calling any Lions here and we are certainly not inviting them to terrorize the guests," Shiro said, coming up on Keith's left. He put a hand on Keith's shoulder and silently asked if he was okay.

Keith nodded once, then turned back to Pidge. "Shiro's right. As amusing as that would be to see," he added with a smirk, "I don't want to have to clean puke out of her consoles."

Pidge sighed, shoulders drooping. "Well, that's a good point. Red doesn't deserve that."

"Which leads me into the other reason I came over," Shiro said dryly. "Allura has decided that you two," he nodded at Pidge and Keith, "are excused to return to the Castle. Coran will take you up and come back."

Pidge looked like she might argue for a second, then capitulated. "Whatever. This is boring anyway. I thought it would be more interesting, but…" She shrugged. "Do you want us to take over for Hunk? If he wants to come down he can. I bet he'd love the little pink cookie things."

"If he'd like," Shiro said. "Hunk?"

"Oh man, that would be awesome," Hunk said. "I want to talk to the Prioritat from Loxxic, too. She seemed interesting."

"Sounds like a plan, then," Shiro decided. "Hunk, keep your comm on, but you can go change and be ready to go when they arrive. Pidge, Keith, you can go wait outside if you'd like." His tone said it wasn’t as much of a suggestion as his words made it seem, but Keith was more than happy to oblige anyway.

Pidge crossed back over to his side, though she asked and waited for permission before hooking her arm in his again.

They got a high number of stares and more than one person cleared the way for them, but Keith wasn't sure it was because of him this time. More than a few gave Pidge the cautious look before they shifted aside.

Normally he didn’t care how people looked at him, and being intimidating could be useful, but right now it was… nice.

"Thank you," he said quietly.

"Hmm?" Pidge said. Her expression was one of triumph, as if she was savoring the way people were looking at her. But then, she was often underestimated by the people they met, so she might very well be.

"Oh, pfft. No problem. It's part of the code," she added as they stepped out into the cooling night air. She turned her face up to the stars and inhaled deeply, then sighed.

He looked up too, wondering if the stars look different to her now that they lived out there among them. He'd certainly found a lot of his perspectives had changed in the time since they'd left Earth.

"The code?" he asked. "The… Paladins' code?"

She snorted and bumped his arm with her shoulder. "No, dork. The sibling code. I get to give you shit because you're basically my brother at this point. But anyone else? They don't get that right. And it's my responsibility to remind them if they overstep their bounds. You're all idiots, but you're _my_ idiots."

She leveled him with a look. "And you _know_ how I feel about people messing with my things."

Yes. Yes, he did. Even Shiro had gotten the sharp side of her tongue for persisting after he'd been warned.

"Oh. Well, thanks anyway."

"Any time," she said with a shark-like grin. "Any time at all."


End file.
